Then he should keep off forums.
When teaching becomes a drudgery, ten it's time to find a new calling.
The pro's are always busy and will give you links to read and hints tips but they expect you as a learner to do the leg work and research etc.
Answering a question directly takes the same if not less time than sending people on a wild goose chase.
Unfortunately the pro's can unintentionally come across as arrogant and unhelpful when in fact they're actually being the opposite but are just too busy to actually express themselves properly.
Quality over quantity.
I tend to ask pretty good and specific questions. And I know that I can easily clarify things. So helping me in the smallest amount of available time isn't hard. (Versus the all too common... "How do I build a website?")
Trust me, if Anthony is in this thread its a good thing.
Honestly, I can't recall one post he has made so far this year that I recall or found helpful.
"Drive-by" posts never help.
And yet I can think of dozens of people that I have had cordial chats with via Threads and/or PM's and we have both learned a lot from the conversations.
I can promise you that. If you think he's being unreasonable then you would hate some of the TeamB people who assist on the Borland/Codegear/Embacadero groups for Delphi. Some of them can write text which literally makes you feel like they're cutting you up when they disect your code and tell you whats wrong.
There is no shortage of people who do things the wrong way. And the civilty went out the window on the Internet in the late 1990's.
They don't do it in a softly softly way they just use comments like "Thats wrong, this won't work, you've not listened to me, stop wasting my time" etc and thats the polite stuff.
I don't mind that if people are attempting to answer my questions.
Nothing is more annoying online than asking "How do I clean a wool sweater?" and getting directions to Big Ben?!
They can get a LOT snottier and can really insult you without trying.
I never called Anthony "snotty".
I just think he likes to type random comments that often don't come close to what I am asking, and they are often in a very passive-aggressive nature (e.g. "I think you know the answer..." and "Maybe you should go look it up...")
That is by definition what a Troll does.
(If you can't say something nice or useful then why bother?)
It takes some people years to get used to the way they think but its worth it
If I had years to get answers to basic questions I wouldn't come here. I would go back to college and spend the next decade just reading quietly in the library.
People tend to ask others for help because they have exhausted their own resources and need help in the here and now.
because when you get used to it and start learning from the Pro's they see you making the effort and when they start saying "Yes, thats right, almost, good code, exactly" etc it makes you feel a lot better about yourself and like you're actually becoming a lot better. You then realise that you gained their respect too and that is always a good thing.
I usually break my questions down into smaller parts so I can quickly learn.
My goal is to learn, and learn quickly.
I always set myself up to succeed.
That is why it is so perplexing that some people take simple requests for help and make them gigantic.
Honestly, I've had some REAL arguments with some of the best programmers out there and I can promise you Anthony isn't being difficult though it might seem like that until you realise thats just how pro coders are.
We never get to debates.
I have never even had a conversation with Anthony.
That is the problem.
Drive-by one-liner about how I can figure it out on my own and then see-ya.
(The guy must have a lot of time on his hands?!)
They don't tend to worry about making friends they just communicate the point - even if they're literally pointing you to another topic. It's pretty common and its just one of those things - nothing personal
That's there loss.
The people who I have learned the most from on SitePoint and elsewhere are the ones who I stay in touch with.
They take time to get to know me, my goals, and when they lace into my code, at least they stick around to help me get better at it.
It's called a "relationship" and "continuity"...
The "pro-coder" approach you describe is like visiting your kid once a month for an hour and thinking that it helps. End result? Dysfunctional kid.
Others on SitePoint take the role of teacher/mentor. End result? A kid that can survive on his/her own and is better off.
How people live their lives is up to them.
But if you are going to help someone, then actually try and help...
Okay, I just wasted an hour of my life responding to your post.
Back to work!